“I’ve never had ‘Sunday dread’”: leading a global record label’s legal and business affairs

Before my career, I had a passion for music but no real insight into how the industry worked. There is not much visibility from the outside. The business structure is fascinating. It has some really big characters with amazing stories. Some of my colleagues have been around for monumental parts of music history, like signing Amy Winehouse.

I really enjoyed my law degree. But I wasn’t sure which aspect of the law I wanted to focus on. I had other interests like media and the arts – music, TV and film – had always appealed to me, though I didn’t think of myself as particularly creative.

I didn’t want to rush into a training contract, so I started looking at other opportunities. Things became clear when someone randomly said to me “have you thought about in-house?” Up until then, I’d never considered it – I don’t remember it coming up as an option at university.

Getting exposure into how a business runs while still getting legal experience sounded like a good place to start. I looked for in-house paralegal work in the media sector and came across a legal internship at Island Records. Once I was in, I immediately knew I wanted to grab the opportunity and run with it.

Studying for the Legal Practice Course (LPC) while working full time was challenging. At the end of the working day, I’d start my studies, using the office as my library each evening. I spent five days in the office and traveled to my LPC course every other Saturday.

The nature of in-house means the training programme may not be as rigid as the seat rotation in private practice. I see that as a benefit, as it gave me the opportunity to get involved in matters that gave me a good variety of work, get stuck into things and make the role my own. Although I was technically still entry-level, I had many responsibilities, including drafting agreements and negotiating commercial deal points.

That period taught me there’s no time to procrastinate. If you need to do a task, do it there and then. If I had earmarked one hour to study, I maximised it.

As part of a business affairs team at a record label, you are there from the beginning of an artist’s career, overseeing their journey at a label. You are negotiating from the outset, whether that’s negotiating their record deal and any extensions or renewals, clearing the records to ensure they can be released, or interacting with the various creatives who create artwork, photographs or music videos.

There has been a lot of change in the industry the past eight years. But day-to-day, my work is still commercial and contract-based. I mostly handle negotiation of record deals. The core hasn't changed but the various issues and considerations have evolved.

Often, we’re negotiating with artists or managers who have already built an audience when you come to make the deal. So the deal might be competitive on terms, and might be different to that of an artist at the beginning of their career.

Assisting Claire Sugrue, the former senior director of legal and business affairs, I learnt about all aspects of running a label’s legal and business affairs. She’d been running the department for 28 years before I took over. She’s a legend in the industry. I feel very lucky she was the person I learned from.

I’ve learnt what a difference there is between watching someone run a department and doing it yourself. I’d been Claire’s right hand over the past few years until my promotion at the beginning of 2024. I am really loving being responsible for making the final call on a deal or negotiation. I’ve also always enjoyed the operational and strategic sides of things, seeing how my work impacts all parts of the business.

I like working with creatives. But some people might have a perception that a matter can have a quick and simple solution – which is often hard to achieve on complicated matters. It’s rarely as easy as “can we get this over the line?” My focus is on making the deal right while maintaining company expectations.

Sometimes in-house is hectic, which is a challenge even if you’re super organised. You have to be practical and spin lots of plates. If you can manage that, and if you find something you really enjoy, stick with it. It’s rare to find a job you love. But I would never advise someone just to ‘work in-house’ – you’ve got to be interested in the company.

It’s very exciting to see an artist who you helped sign be successful. Three years ago, I worked on the recording agreement for the Last Dinner Party. Now, they’ve just come off the back of a worldwide tour and had the biggest debut from a UK artist in 2024.

I received the Rising Star award at the Women in Music Awards 2024. That was a very proud moment. It’s inspiring seeing so many amazing women across the industry be recognised. To be part of these awards was an honour. I think we really need to champion the professional achievements of women with events like these, as there is still work to do in terms of female representation in senior leadership.

I’ve never had ‘Sunday dread’. I’ve always enjoyed coming into work, and felt like I’ve gotten so much out of my time at Universal. It’s a whole lot easier if you love what you do.

Lead image credit: Music Week Women In Music Awards 2024